More than a third of millennials polled approve of communism

More than a third of millennials polled approve of communism

 

Biggest threat to world peace? 27% named President Trump, 22% said Kim Jong-Un, and 15% tapped Vladimir Putin

Published: Nov 2, 2019 

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Is even communism making a comeback?

Somewhere, Bernie Sanders is smiling.

A new survey released by the Washington, D.C., nonprofit Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation reflects that, if the younger generation gets out and votes in 2020, those running for office on the far left have reason to be hopeful.

‘The historical amnesia about the dangers of communism and socialism is on full display in this year’s report.’

Marion Smith, executive director of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation

According to YouGov, which conducted the poll, capitalism, amid a widening divide between the haves and have-nots, has plunged in popularity from a year ago, with one out of every two millennials — ages 23 to 38 — supporting it.

Meanwhile, 36% of millennials polled say that they approve of communism, which is up significantly from 28% in 2018.

Socialism, a dirty word to the president and many of his supporters, has shown a decrease in favorability in all age groups except the Silent Generation (age 74+) and millennials, of which 70% say they’d be likely to vote for a socialist candidate.

Marion Smith, executive director of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, says he’s troubled by the findings of the poll.

“The historical amnesia about the dangers of communism and socialism is on full display in this year’s report,” Smith said in a statement on Monday. “When we don’t educate our youngest generations about the historical truth of 100 million victims murdered at the hands of communist regimes over the past century, we shouldn’t be surprised at their willingness to embrace Marxist ideas.”

Other nuggets from the report include that 22% of millennials believe “society would be better if all private property was abolished,” and that 45% of Generation Z members and millennials believe that “all higher education should be free.”

As for the biggest threat to world peace, 27% across every generation pointed a finger at President Trump, while 22% named North Korea’s Kim Jong-Un and 15% picked Russia’s Vladimir Putin.  China was surprisingly acceptable.